


CatoSwap AU

by RandomFandomJasper



Category: Final Space (Cartoon)
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-12-10
Updated: 2019-12-16
Packaged: 2021-02-25 22:54:40
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 3
Words: 2,800
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21743317
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/RandomFandomJasper/pseuds/RandomFandomJasper
Summary: Exactly what it sounds like. The Catos swap. The first chapter is just a one-shot that was requested a while back, and this is the continuation of it. Don't know how far I'll go with it, I have ideas all the way into S2, but I guess we'll see how this plays out.So... what if the blast didn't get Avocato?
Comments: 3
Kudos: 31





	1. Right There

Avocato was having trouble believing what was happening. He had Little Cato. Like, _really_ had him. No ambush, no tricks, no traps; just him, Gary, and his son ascending the rope to safety.

Despite the overwhelming sense of relief, Avocato also felt an impending sense of something… _bad._ And he didn’t know what said _bad_ was, exactly. He chalked it up to nerves.

He had spent so long looking for Little Cato, he had grown used to close calls and near misses. Instinct was telling him something was going to go wrong. That he hadn’t truly gotten his son back yet. There was still _something._

But he ignored it. Because his son right here next to him. Little Cato was right there. And there was nothing–absolutely _nothing_ –that was going to take his son away from him again.

While Gary dealt with KVN, Avocato took a moment to ruffle his son’s hair. It was damp from the rain, but still as blue and wild as he remembered it. Everything about Little Cato was the same. Even the sweater.

Had he been wearing that the _whole_ three years he was imprisoned? Avocato would have to get this kid a new shirt at some point.

Overcome with emotion all over again, he knelt on the floor of the ship and wrapped his arms around his son for the first time in… he couldn’t remember when.

When Little Cato hugged him back, Avocato could feel the smile against his shoulder. Though what was strange was how he stiffened in Avocato’s arms. He guessed his son was unused to hugs, after all he went through.

Avocato tried to comfort his son with a few words of reassurance. “As excited as I am about today, I’m even more excited for tomorrow.”

One of Little Cato’s arms pulled away from Avocato’s back. “Yeah…” he whispered, “Me too…”

That’s when Avocato heard the faint beeping. He panicked immediately, searching his son for the bomb he knew he was hearing. But he found nothing.

Another sound, arguably more terrifying than the steadily increasing beeps, barely reached his ears. “I’m sorry, Dad.”

“Son, what-” Little Cato suddenly broke away from Avocato’s embrace and ran to the opposite side of the airlock. Terror gripped him at the red light flashing in his son’s hand. “No no no, _stop!”_

Gary didn’t actually realize what was happening at first. It hit him when the Little Cato dashed by him, and he could see the metal death trap in the kid’s paw. A whispered, “No…” escaped his throat, knowing he couldn’t do anything at this point to stop what was going to happen.

And in that moment Gary had a choice. He could see Avocato starting to take off after Little Cato, and _god_ he wanted nothing more than for his friend to save his son…

But there was no way Avocato would get there in time. He just hoped his friend would forgive him for what he was about to do next.

He tackled his friend mid-run and they both slammed into a nearby support beam. “Gary, let go of me!” Avocato shouted at him, struggling against Gary’s grasp. “Let me-!”

The explosion drowned out whatever he was going to say next. Gary was thankful that his friend at least retained enough sanity to hold the metal support Gary had knocked them into. Otherwise he would have been sucked out of the ship along with all the debris.

Little Cato… didn’t make it. Gary almost couldn’t bring himself to look, but he forced himself to. Just to make sure there wasn’t even just a _small_ chance they could save him.

But there were some things you just couldn’t save a person from. And a bomb to the chest was one of them.

Gary could see Avocato’s mouth opened in a tormented scream, but with the gaping hole in the ship, even sound was sent hurtling into space.

By the time HUE managed to seal off the hole torn into the side of the ship, Little Cato was gone. Avocato stared out into space, maybe trying to find his son somewhere in the void that swallowed everything, but everyone knew he wouldn’t find what he was looking for.

And somewhere deep down, Avocato knew it too. He knew that no matter how long he stared at the cavernous hole, it wouldn’t bring back Little Cato.

Something was off, he _knew_ something was off. He _felt_ it as soon as he stepped on the ship.

Now… he couldn’t feel _anything._ He should’ve been sad, angry, something, _anything_. But he couldn’t muster the energy to do anything but stare.

It just didn’t seem real.

Little Cato was _right there…_


	2. Aftermath

To say that Gary was worried about Avocato had to be the understatement of the century. The guy hadn’t left his room since losing Little Cato, Gary didn’t know what to do. He wanted to help his friend, but he didn’t know if he could.

His inability to help Avocato left him frustrated. So when he found KVN welding the bathroom shut, he was more than a little irritated. If KVN wasn’t nearly indestructible, Gary would’ve destroyed him a _long_ time ago.

On the plus side, his prison sentence was over, as HUE so graciously reminded him. And of course the first thing he did was head right for the the glass case full of cookies. Honestly, he wanted to tear into the friggin’ things like the Cookie Monster, but he stopped when Quinn walked in.

“Gary,” she said, “You _need_ to talk to Avocato.”

Gary lifted his hands, palms up in confusion. “What do I even say? He finally gets his kid back after three years, and now he’s…”

“I know,” Quinn put a hand on his shoulder, “But you still need to talk to him. He needs a friend right now.”

She was right, of course, and Gary knew it. That was how he ended up standing outside of Avocato’s door, pacing back and forth trying to think of something to say. “Alright, come on, Gary.” He shook out his hands. “Just knock on the door. Avocato needs you.”

He knocked quietly, but received no response. Knocking a little louder earned him a “Go away, Gary.”

“Avocato, come on man,” Gary tried, “It’s been three days. Talk to me.”

The door opened to reveal a ragged Avocato. “There’s nothing to talk about.”

“Dude, you lost your kid… there’s a _lot_ to talk about here.” Gary looked at his friend worriedly. “I just want to help. I know I probably can’t, but I want to try. Please?”

Avocato sighed. “Okay. You can… come in, I guess.”

Stepping inside, Gary found himself glancing around. “I always forget how many weapons you’ve got in here. How’d you even get these on the ship? Like the guns I get, but I don’t remember you having the axes when you boarded the Galaxy One… or the swords.”

“I have my ways,” Avocato replied. “I tried teaching Little Cato how to use some of this stuff, but we never really… had the time.”

Gary hadn’t expected the emotional trip down memory lane, but he was going to listen. “Oh yeah? Do you think he would’ve been any good?”

Avocato laughed a little. “Not with mine, no. They’d be way too big for him. But with an axe or sword his size? Absolutely.” He put a hand on top of his helmet. “He was a quick learner, and good at anything he tried.”

“He was a great hacker,” Gary noted. “He got through that door like it was nothing.”

“It was one of the first things I taught him. And he was right, by the way. He really did surpass me a long time ago.”

Gary sat down on the bed. “Did you teach him to fight?”

“I taught him to shoot,” Avocato said, “And some basic hand-to-hand combat. But he’s mostly self-taught. I wasn’t exactly around a lot, you know?” He picked up his helmet and flipped it over, pulling out a small picture. “I wish I had been though.”

He sat down next to Gary and showed him the picture. “Oh wow… how long ago was this?”

“Three years. Just a few days before the… you know.”

Gary nodded. “Yeah.” He rested his elbows on his knees. “Look, I know this has got to be the worst feeling in the world. I literally can’t think of a _single worse_ thing that could have happened.”

Avocato stared at the picture. “It _should_ be the worst feeling. I _should_ feel sad. Or angry. Probably both. But I just feel… numb.”

“You’ve probably just come full circle,” Gary told him, “Like, you feel so bad that you just… can’t feel anything. I’ve been there, and it sucks.” He put a hand on Avocato’s shoulder. “But when all that bad finally does start getting through that wall of numbness, I’ll be here, okay?”

“Thanks, Gary.” Avocato put the picture back in his helmet. “I really thought I had him back… I didn’t think the Lord Commander could take anything else from me.”

Gary gave his shoulder a squeeze. “We’ll get him, Avocato. We’re gonna make him pay for _everything.”_

Avocato looked up at him. “Promise?”

“Promise.” Gary held up a hand. “Clasp?” Avocato took his hand and smiled weakly. “Hell yeah,” Gary said. “Let’s do this.”

 _‘Gary?’_ HUE’s voice said suddenly, _‘Someone has boarded the Galaxy One.’_

Gary and Avocato both jumped up. “What do you mean ’someone has boarded the ship’?!”


	3. Self-Destruct

Avocato was cursing the whole way to the bridge. They were being boarded. Of course they were being boarded! As if he didn’t have enough on his plate already.

His mind was racing. Who could it possibly be? He had so many enemies, it could have been anyone. Not that it would have mattered who it was. They were dead, no matter who they were.

Gary pressed the button to open the door. “Quinn! Quinn, are you oka-” Avocato ran into Gary, who took two steps in the door and halted for some reason. Avocato rubbed his nose where he had slammed into his friend.

“Why the hell did you stop?!” Avocato demanded. He stepped around his still friend and looked around the bridge. At first he thought he was imagining things, what with the double vision and all. Then he realized that he was actually seeing two separate Quinns. One of them seemed older, with blue eyes and a metallic implant in her forehead, but it was undoubtedly Quinn.

Quinn was staring at her older self, completely bewildered. “What the tough tiddy whompus?”

“Hello, Quinn.”

Gary pointed between the two of them. “Anyone want to explain why there are two incredibly hot Quinn’s aboard this ship?”

“Anyone wanna tell me why I should _trust_ the second Quinn aboard this ship?” Avocato added.

The older Quinn held up her hands placatingly. “I’m Quinn, but from a different timeline. Call me Nightfall.”

Quinn snorted. “God, that’s stupid. Who came up with that?”

Nightfall gestured to Gary. “He did.”

“I did?” Gary asked.

“Hold on,” Avocato interjected. “How can you two be anywhere near each other? Isn’t this some kind of time paradox?”

“Excellent question,” Gary commented.

Nightfall shrugged. “Apparently not.”

“Excellent answer!”

Avocato gave Gary a look. “No, it’s _not_.”

“Well, it works for me.” Gary looked at the newcomer expectantly. “What are you doing here anyway? Why come to _our_ timeline?”

Nightfall’s expression turned serious. “I’m trying to do the same thing you’re doing. Save the Earth.” She looked Avocato up and down. “Although… I _am_ a little concerned about _your_ presence here.” Avocato didn’t answer, almost daring Nightfall to continue. “There are timelines where Gary doesn’t meet you. But in the ones where he _does_ meet you, you’re usually gone by the time I get here. It’s usually either Quinn and Gary or Quinn, Gary, and Little Cato.”

Avocato felt his stomach turn. “Little Cato’s supposed to be here? How many timelines am I still alive?”

“As far as I know? Just this one,” Nightfall said, “You take a bomb to the chest.”

KVN gasped. “Oh, oh, oh! That’s what happened to Little Cato!” He shook Avocato’s shoulder. “Remember? Remember when he blew up and went flying into space?”

Avocato shoved KVN off, his stomach no longer churning, just falling through the floor of the ship. “Little Cato was supposed to live?”

Gary put a hand on his shoulder. “You okay?”

“No,” Avocato replied. “How are we saving the universe?”

“Avocato…”

He refused to look at Gary. Because as soon as he did, he was going to see the unending sympathy in Gary’s eyes and he was going to break down all over again. And he just couldn’t do it. “Nightfall. How do we save the universe?”

Nightfall hummed. “Well, Quinn hasn’t kicked Gary off the ship yet, which means we don’t have to kill Mooncake.”

Gary grabbed the floating orb out of the air and held him close. “What?!”

“If you go off on your own, Mooncake loses it. He snaps, and obliterates everything in the universe.”

Avocato glanced briefly at Quinn. Why would she ever kick Gary off the ship? Sure, he was a little overbearing, but-

“And there’s always the option that Gary _stays,_ but I’ve yet to find a solution. The Lord Commander still opens Final Space. I’ve seen it happen hundreds of times.” She glances at Gary wearily. “I’ve seen you _die_ hundreds of times.”

Gary hummed. “Reassuring as that sounds, I’d really prefer to, you know, _not_ die.” He clapped his hands together. “So! I’m gonna change into some normal clothes for the first time in five years and try this conversation again when I’m more comfortable.”

“In that case, I’ll inform Quinn and Avocato on our next course of action.” Nightfall nodded to the controls. “Come on.”

Quinn looked to Avocato, who hadn’t moved from where he was standing. “You uh…?”

“No.” He turned to leave the room. “I’ve got something to take care of first. You two get us on course.”

Too much weirdness. _Way_ too much weirdness for one day, but one thing stood out to him more than anything else. Little Cato _was not_ supposed to die. In every one of the hundreds of timelines Nightfall had visited, _he_ was the one that got killed.

It was never supposed to be Little Cato.

This timeline was a mistake.

He strode into the open area where Nightfall had stored her ship. The door opened easily enough, KVN floating in behind him. “Whaaaaat are we doing Avocato?”

 _“We_ aren’t doing anything.” Avocato looked over the controls. “ _I_ am going to make sure this timeline doesn’t get a repeat.” More than anything, he wanted to go back and save Little Cato, but he had no idea how this thing worked, and he doubted Nightfall would show him.

So he was going to do the next best thing. Destroy it.

Avocato opened up KVN’s metal casing and detached a few of the wires. He connected them to the ship, hoping to trigger some kind of self-destruct sequence by introducing a foreign entity to whatever ran this thing.

And it worked. Just a few minutes of screwing around with the control panel and the small ship was filled with red lights and a voice monotonously warning him that the ship was going to destroy itself.

The door sealed itself shut, but Avocato wasn’t too worried about it. What good is a gun if you can’t occasionally shoot your way out of self-destructing time machines with it?

He tuned out KVN singing about how they were going to die and started methodically shooting at the metal door. Once he had a good enough outline, he gave the door a couple of solid kicks, knocking out the weakened section.

Whether or not KVN followed him out wasn’t a huge concern of his. Nothing was really. He registered Gary’s shocked face as he stepped out of the glitching machine, he must have heard the ship going nuts and came to see what was up. As much as Avocato would have loved to explain, he just couldn't find it in himself at the moment. He just wanted to be as far away from that thing as possible.

Besides, Gary was a smart guy. He could figure it out.

Avocato brushed past Quinn and Nightfall on his way out. Quinn was saying something. Or maybe they both were. But he couldn’t hear them over his own heartbeat, which seemed to be a lot louder than it usually was.

It seemed like Gary was right after all. The numbness really did wear off after a while. And it looked like some of that anger was finally starting to come through.


End file.
